Letters to the editor 6/13

Fortis plan has hallmarks of successful merger

As a local business leader, community volunteer and impacted customer, I encourage the New York state Public Service Commission to approve the merger between Fortis Inc. and CH Energy Group, the parent company of Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp.

I have spent more than three decades in the banking industry, and I have witnessed many mergers and consolidations. The hallmarks of the successful ones are all evident in this proposed transaction: A commitment to community, continuance of local management expertise, retention of local identity and tangible benefits for customers.

Fortis has committed to operate Central Hudson as a standalone entity, to retain every single employee, to keep its name and corporate headquarters and to extend $50 million in benefits to customers. In return, they will add Central Hudson's dividend to their own to benefit shareholders who are very similar to current CH Energy Group shareholders, and have the opportunity to earn a return on investments they are willing to make to improve the infrastructure. The Fortis acquisition will provide capital and resources for Central Hudson to make capital investments without ratepayer increases for the next three years.

I have served in many volunteer leadership capacities with members of Central Hudson's executive team. They are absolutely committed to the Hudson Valley, and they should be commended for making a difficult-but-correct decision in the best interest of all of their stakeholders. The sooner this merger is approved, the sooner these companies can move forward to provide certainty and concrete benefits for all concerned.

John F. Rath

Newburgh

Punish those who leak U.S. security information

Like all other secrets of national defense and homeland security, our government's collecting communications records was meant to be kept secret, not from the American people, but from terrorists.

I hope the arrogant creeps who took it upon themselves to compromise our security and safety by revealing national security operations are arrested and punished to the fullest extent of the law.

President Obama has done a good job protecting us from another day of mass murder like 9/11.

These utterly irresponsible, seditious leaks undermine his ongoing ability to do that.

K.J. Walters

Monroe

Fathers are a key part of families, society

With the way fathers are attacked in this society, I'm surprised Father's Day is still a holiday.

We are mocked in so-called sitcoms, vilified by pseudo-feminists, ignored and not consulted by abortionists, passed over by social engineers who mask their attacks by attacking and distorting the traditional family.

To believe these people, it would seem that not only are fathers not necessary, but that we'd be better off without them.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

In this age of deteriorating morals and social isolation, fathers, real fathers, are crucial. The statistics are overwhelming. The children of fatherless homes are far more likely to drop out of school, go to jail, take drugs, live in poverty, engage in teen sexual activity and commit suicide.

Men, it's time we stopped believing the lie. The future is in our hands and we must fight back by taking back our families.

We must rediscover the joys of lasting marriages and set an example to our sons on how to love our wives and to our daughters on how they should be loved by their husbands. We must show that love often means self-sacrifice and commitment, forgiveness and tenderness, courage and humility.

It means the strength to correct and discipline. It means forgoing some of our wants and some of our dreams to provide a better, stable, loving home. It means quiet time in prayer.

We owe that to our own fathers. We owe it to our wives and children.

Jeffrey Mahoney

Hyde Park

ADVERTISEMENT

Most Popular

Most Commented

More Headlines

Most Viewed

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Email this article

Letters to the editor 6/13

As a local business leader, community volunteer and impacted customer, I encourage the New York state Public Service Commission to approve the merger between Fortis Inc. and CH Energy Group, the